Rewind, Refight, Relive
by masamune11
Summary: Albafica should have died when Minos fell him with his Cosmic Marionation. But he rose again, after bargaining his right to live, even if it's for short moments; the right which he gained through competition in the Khronos Game. AU, FateTheme. Ch6 is up.
1. Prelude: Ending One's Life

**Disclaimer:** Fate and Saint Seiya Lost Canvas series do not belong to me. They belong to TYPE-MOON and Masami Kurumada (though it was drawn by Shiori Teshirogi, the world is basically Kurumada's) respectively. I take no profit in the making of this fan fiction, but still hope for some feed backs from the reviewer. Okay? I think it's clear enough. :)

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><p><strong>Prelude: Ending One's Life<strong>

Pisces Albafica gritted his teeth as he watched how Minos was able to blow his last offensive and defensive means. The Griffon managed to use his technique once and he practically wiped off all of his demon rose garden, scattering the peddles across the borders of the city. What annoyed him the most, however, was that smug smirk.

Griffon Minos practically _looked __down _at him. The very fact that this devil was toying with his body itself was enough for him to glare in anger; the urge to kill this man was so strong that Albafica was willing to sacrifice his limb in the process, just to gain control again, over his body.

Anything except being a toy for this sick Underworld Judge.

Minos' amused face is very apparent. "I see you're ready to break yourself. Interesting."

Albafica could see the playful gleam in the eyes of his enemy and smirked haughtily in reply. That smirk was not only to show his superiority, but also due to the abrupt disappearance of _cosmo_ from Minos' men. Perhaps the leader was too preoccupied with the prey before him that he did not understand it sooner? Albafica, again, quirked him a satisfying smirk.

"Bloody roses," he started, "once thrown at the enemy, the white petals will change color from white to red—the color of its target's blood. Surely you realized that by now that _your_ men is already gone, eh, Griffon Minos?"

But Griffon Minos just laughed, while Albafica gritted his teeth. "You _laugh_ over their deaths?"

Minos stopped laughing, then looked down again with that maniacal gaze of his. "Excuse me, really. But I just thought that you're worth destroying!"

His _cosmo_ quickly built up and was transferred through his puppeteer's string; _Cosmic__ Marionettion_ required its master to be readily fueled by power, should he wish to still control his enemy movements. By the time he was stopping the force, he already had Albafica twisted his own leg. He stopped however, just to see red mist forming all around him; Albafica's next attack will be _Crimson__ Thorn_.

It's not really _that _threatening, at least for the Griffon. Said specter simply blocked the random bloody needles with his own wing, isolating himself from such contacts—and the stroke again, with his fingers. A simple gesture of his fingers made the gold saint of Pisces writhed silently, and he began wondering how this _beautiful_ man will scream due to the terrors of his technique.

"I still can't believe that something so beautiful has this much of fighting spirit," he said, amused at how persistent Albafica was, "But still, you're not strong enough!"

There goes on simple movement of his own finger; Albafica could feel part of his joints in his body cracked loudly, but still held back his scream.

"You don't have the power to go your own way—" again, that finger moved, and Albafica yelped silently, trying to fight the pain.

"—the power to show your desires—" and then another simple gesture.

"—and the power to destroy other people!" He finalized, glaring maniacally at the gold saint who tried to resist. An almost-broken toy, staring at him with such rebellious eyes; what kind of entertainment would Minos get from such toy? Hence, as he clenched his fist, Griffon Minos watched how he broke his toy by two, twisting the torso of his enemy.

What lied before Minos by then was the broken body of Albafica the Pisces Saint. He fell, and failed to protect Rodorio.

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><p><em>'I don't want this to be the end...'<em>

Albafica could not feel his limb; in fact, he could not even feel anything—not even the blood which should be in his pharynx or even his twisted arm due to Griffon Minos' attack. He felt like floating between space and time, recalling his duties, once again, as the saint of Athena and how he failed to fulfill it. The empty feeling, while it gave him the comfort that he needed, was no match to the guilty feeling of abandoning his friends, by yielding to death.

But that's it. One person can only have one life. If his flame of life went out because of a specter, than it is as it should be; saints should die in battlefield, while protecting their loved ones in the process. The very image of a decimated Rodorio quickly corrupted that idea.

_'I __don't __accept __this,'_he screamed again, mentally, hoping someone would answer his plea for second chance. _'I__ cannot __accept __this!'_

But no one replied. Albafica still lied floating in the middle of darkness. He could feel a weak tug on his back; his hunch told him that the time he accepted the invitation is the time of his permanent death. For the first time in his currently non-existent being in this plane, Albafica refused to die. He had left too many people defenseless; he could not die without ensuring their safety first!

And then, there was Athena...

Albafica gritted his teeth, feeling the tug on his backbone grew stronger and stronger.

"..."

And somehow, he recalled his past events; how he managed to avoid other people due to his firm belief that his blood will do harm more than good. He recalled of bowing in front of Athena, and said goddess softly smiled at him as a reply, even after showing his distant nature. A gentle, soft-hearted smile; a smile so pure that made him wanting to believe that maybe... maybe she's the goddess that understand his need to be left alone. As her vivid picture vanished, one by one, memories washed over his being as if trying to make him forget that he's in the brink of death.

The tug on his back hurt more than ever.

"...Please, hear my prayers..." he whispered, even when he knew that no one was there, "Just to protect those people... just to make sure that they're safe... I'll exchange anything... so please..."

Perhaps he was wrong. Perhaps, there was still something which heard his silent prayers. Darkness of the vacant room was dispelled, and what he saw in that was more of an indescribable being, away from his sense and understanding. That _being_ was alive and communicated through mental link: "_be __ours, __and __we __shall __grant __your __wish._"

"I..."

Albafica did not exactly remember what he uttered.

* * *

><p>Shun Amamiya quickly raced through the corridors of his school, silently cursing under his breath for his own tardiness. School may hardly start in 6.30 AM, but the very fact that he was supposed to be on early cleaning duty that time, the teen could not help but cursed under his breath; why did he have to accompany his older brother throughout the night just to play video games?<p>

He decided that blaming is older brother would not help him solve anything and finally stepped in to his classroom. "Morning, sorry I'm late!"

The first person which registered in his mind was his dark-green-haired friend, Shiryu, who was holding a bucket of water on his right and a mop on his left hand. He was trying to greet Shun, yes, but finally only quirked a smile an nodded; waving his hand then meant swinging his mop around. Shun quickly put his bag on his usual seat and promptly pick the class' mop. By then, Shiryu was already mopping the front part of the class.

"Let me guess," Shiryu started as Shun walked past him, "Ikki forced you to play again until drop?"

That triggered a smile on Shun's face, actually, "you could say so."

Shiryu snickered as he started mopping the floor between seatings, "well, that's just plainly predictable."

Shun chuckled and continued his work. He never noticed Shiryu's concerned gaze on his back, painted with worry over his friend's condition. Who couldn't notice the obvious black circles under his friend's eyes, anyway?

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><p>Shun and his friends had been going for a lunch routine on the rooftop of their school since the day they applied at Fuyuki High. Just like their usual lunches before, they managed to get on top of the roof, trying to savor the <em>bento<em> which they prepared beforehand—except for Seiya, who proclaimed that he had no time to prepare one and decided to buy it at the nearest supermarket. It was a nice, quiet lunch, at least until Shun decided to unravel his worry; unsaid worries which Shiryu had already noticed before.

"I got another nightmare last night."

It's amazing how three heads quickly turned to the one who spouts those words. Then again, if those words came from Shun, no one could ignore it. The team, which basically consists of Shiryu, Hyoga—a blond Siberian who happens to inherit Japanese ancestry through his father—, and Seiya—childhood friend of Shun who manages to find himself lost in Fuyuki city last year. However, the first person who practically voiced his concern was Seiya, as he quickly stopped chewing his food and then eyed him intensely.

"Again, Shun?" he asked, and Shun half-heartedly nodded. "It's just nightmare, right? It's not like it's a premonition or something."

"Seiya..." Hyoga silently warned, and Seiya simply shrugged. "But he's right. Surely, it's just... well, nightmare. It's still unlikely to come true, Shun."

"I would not be so worried if the nightmares were different..." Shun groaned. "But the dream... they've been the same for three nights straight!"

"Which clearly explain those circles under your eyes," Shiryu quickly pointed. Shun shifted uncomfortably as his friend pointed the obvious. To add it all, Hyoga and Seiya just _had_ to stare at him worriedly. The next minute, Seiya just had to ask the simplest thing—but perhaps most irresponsible one—which he could ask.

"You never told us about your dream, anyway Shun."

Shun stared back. "Surely you've heard that your nightmare will come true if you tell someone else, Seiya..."

Seiya snorted in response, "I never thought of you as a believer in petty rumors. Come on, Shun! I had nightmares, I told it to all of you, and what? I'm still a living piece!"

"That's because you had nightmares of crabs and winged ponies" Hyoga rolled his eyes nonchalantly before those facts got to Seiya's head. "We all know the latter do not exist."

"Hey!"

The latter smirked victoriously, "I know it for a fact, Seiya."

Shun just smiled awkwardly and his friend's bickering, and then gazed at his _bento_ uncomfortably. Part of him wanted to tell all of them, really, but the very fact that his dream included his friends _and_ his own brother... now he wondered if it's such a good idea.

"So," Shiryu's word quickly made Shun jumped to the reality once more with a yelp. Shiryu raised an eyebrow at Shun's reaction, of course; was the latter teen really in a deep trance or what? "Not ready to tell us the story, yet?"

Shun gave a small smile to his friends—a complete, final decision, "not now. Sorry guys."

Of course, he was expecting another bickering to start between Hyoga and Seiya (they were always the ones who lighten the team's mood). But no; Seiya perhaps noticed Shun's unwillingness to share his problem and decided to drop the matters.

For now, he would rather keep those vision to himself.

* * *

><p>"Ikki, you're not fully recovered yet, so stop playing!"<p>

Sometimes, he thought that Ikki, his own blood brother, is very impossible to the point of madness. When one should be dropping dead right on his own bed due to severe influenza, Ikki somehow managed to move himself in front of TV, grabbing several video games on the process, and was then playing _Tokken__ 6_ on their owned _Plug Station__2_ by the time Shun got home.

To top it all, Shun was supposed to _take __care_ of his sick brother. How, pray do tell, could he when his brother basically ignored every sound suggestion that he has offered?

"I will! After I finished Heihachiky—OH MAAAN!"

Shun sighed and went straight to the kitchen. The apartment where they lived was basically rent by their parents, who were working out of country as far as he remembered. The rooms itself were not that fancy; the Amamiya never took pride in their material possession. Why rent bigger apartment if the children will not make use of it more throughly?

He expected to see major dirty dishes all over the place by the time he entered the kitchen. However, he was more amazed that the room was practically _spotless._Dirty dishes were nowhere in sight, no speck of dust under the table, and even a stain of curry-leftovers from last night meal. Gone and clean... except for the thrashes though. But Shun still sighed.

"Brother, I thought I told you before! I'll handle the chores so that you may rest!" he shouted from the room, earning a smirk from Ikki.

"Can't have you do all the work, Shun. Really now."

And just that. Ikki was back to his _Plug Station__2,_apparently having changed the game after being defeated by COM after god-knows-how-much-times. Shun sweat-dropped and partially gave up on encouraging his brother to take some rest. Besides, games should let his brother loosen up a little bit in this quiet room. Noting that in mind, he started extracting their weekly thrashes which were already neatly packed, again thanks to Ikki.

Just then, he smelled a sweet fragrance.

"Huh?" he instinctively muttered and looked at the window just to make sure. His eyes caught glimpse of red petals. "Roses?"

But the kitchen windows were thoroughly sealed. How could some rose petals floated inside the room? And more importantly, why did he not notice the book which was lying right on the kitchen table before? The eerily black book cover was decorated with silver linings and donned with pentagram logo on the front and back side of the book.

Shun eyed the book dressed in black leather with suspicions; Ikki was not a book person and Shun was also positive that he never had this kind of book before in his arsenal. Then whose book is it?

After deciding that leaving the book all alone was not a wise choice, Shun grabbed it as he went outside to dispose their weekly garbage. He was tempted to read the content while walking, but his gut feeling told him that it's not the brightest idea to follow. Hence, after disposing what he had in front of the apartment, Shun quickly went to the garage and opened the book and read the content.

What amazed him was that he could understand the content thoroughly, as though he had read that book a long time ago. By the time his hand flipped over the pages and reached the last, Shun felt the need to execute the order of this book—the very thing that must be done.

"...I just hope it did not bring much problem, though..."

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><p>It was easy to fulfill the requested ingredients to meet the book's guidance. What he basically needed are a pair of chalks and two bunches of red roses. Aside from the basic ingredients, it's required for him to shed some drops of his blood (which is why he's bringing his swiz-knife as well) and read incantation typed in the book.<p>

What would they do? Shun had no idea. But he still went for it anyway, as if it was natural... as if it was meant to be.

Shun sighed as he picked one of the chalk and start drawing on the ground according to the book's illustration. It was basically 4 simple patterns combined into one design: a pentagram, an octagon, an inside triangle, and an outer ring to conceive everything inside. The runes which was supposed to be written in the inside of the 'magic circle' was a different story altogether. Shun managed to write the first runes of the outer rim, before knowing that he should be writing _it_ on the _inside_ of the rim.

After struggling to make a single 'magic circle' for almost an hour, Shun sighed in relief. The circle is finished, the deed is done; all that is available for now is to see whether his work will be successful. By then, part of his mind thought this as ridiculous.

_But something tells me that I must do this..._

Sighing once again, Shun held the book in front of himself, feeling anxious by the passing seconds. He even read the passage of ritual several times before trying to chant the mantra, only to back down and read it again to make sure that there will be no mistake on his part. Finally, he opened his mouth, ready to speak.

"Heed my words, my will creates your body, your sword creates my destiny—" he pulled out his knife, cut his finger, and let his blood dripped on the semen floor of the garage. Shun was so stunned to see his circle began to glow eerily red that he stopped chanting. Only after his finger stopped bleeding did he continue with his incantation.

"—if you heed the Grail's call and obey my will and reason, then answer me!"

Shun felt part of his energy is slowly being drained from his reserve. But really, could he stop then? He gritted his teeth. Rose petals start to swirl around him, strengthening the supernatural ambiance.

"I hereby swear that I shall be all the good in this world, that I shall defeat all evil in the world—" Shun took a deep breath to ensure his intonation, silently hoping that he's not doing something foolish. _'but __I __guess __it's __too__ late __for __that...'_

"—you, Seven Heavens, shrouded by the three great words of power, come forth from the circle of inhibition!"

There was a big flash and a powerful gust of wind that knocked Shun back. His book was thrown out of nowhere. Red petals flying all over his view, clouding his sense. But one thing he's very sure then: he's not alone. Standing before him was a tall—_beautiful,_ if he might add—man with long blue hair, clad in golden armor and white manteau. His right hand evidently held a red rose.

"I ask you, are you the one who summon me?"

Shun could feel his heart stop for a moment when that baritone voice echoed in the garage.

"I am Albafica of Pisces, loyal saint of Athena," he said calmly and bowed politely, "This rose is yours to command, master."

Shun fainted.

***~To be Continued~***

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><p><strong>Author's <strong>**Note:** I think I am going crazy if I ever cross Fate and SSLC series altogether, but hey, who can blame the plot bunnies, anyway? Because I am not really that expert in making a whole gigantic plot about SSLC and Fate in their respective side, I just think, "hey, it may be fun to put both series together!". And it did. Whew, here's chapter 1 for you then. But don't bother hoping on FSN character like Rin or Shirou, because they'll not be here in this fiction. Basically, this story itself is an AU version of SSLC and FSN altogether; just different story with similar background. Just because of this nature, I had trouble deciding on what category should I put this story in: crossover or still Saint Seiya. I mean, basically, this story will revolve purely on Saint Seiya's characters, with Fate's worldly characteristic, so I cannot really put my finger in this.

Oh, and in this story, the team (except Ikki) is on their first highschool year. Yeah, I still put Shiryu and Hyoga in the first year as well, even though both of them are one year older than Shun and Seiya, just for convenience sake :3


	2. Chapter I: Seemingly Normal

**Disclaimer:** Fate and Saint Seiya Lost Canvas series do not belong to me. They belong to TYPE-MOON and Masami Kurumada (though it was drawn by Shiori Teshirogi, the world is basically Kurumada's) respectively. I take no profit in the making of this fan fiction, but still hope for some feedbacks from the reviewer.

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><p><strong>Chapter I: Seemingly Normal<strong>

It was his official summon and he had to face a fainted master? Pisces Albafica sighed at how things turned to be. Even though he had all the necessary information of this world, handling a fainted master is not really the most general thing to do. Surely, the master expected him when he read the book, right?

Albafica groaned again when the scenario of his master summoning him without information of the game entered his mind.

"Worrying about it will not help anyone," he sighed again and observed his surroundings and was not stunned by how the architecture of the building in the slightest. He was summoned as a servant not without adequate information about current world situation. Although, he must admit that he was impressed with how advanced the architecture of the building.

Noticing that they're underground—or more specifically, in the basement—the blue-haired man carried his newly-found master bridal-style. He was about to leap out the building to bring his master away from the damp place, when he noticed the black book decked in black leather and pentacle logo. He frowned and quickly put it on top of Shun's folded hand.

"You will have to guard that book very closely by your side, Master," he softly spoke, "If we ever want to win this war, that is."

Shun's form, of course, did not response nor make signs on the man's comment. By the time a cold gust of wind blew, Albafica was already leaping outside the building, knocking on the door several times, lying the body of his master in front of the door, and then disappearing in flickers of light after the residence opened the door.

There was a panic scream soon after, followed by a cursing Ikki.

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><p>The first thing he felt were gentle and soft caresses on his hair when he regained his awareness. However, by the time he opened his eyes, he could only see traces of flickering blue-red light over his head, which his brain identified just as a hallucination. Slowly, he got up from his own bed, wandering how the heck had he even gone back to his room once more.<p>

"...Hmm...," he thought carefully, eyes still bleary, but he could not really put out why. "I remembered of going down to the basement, making some sort of magic circle or sorts..."

Shun tried to recall more but to no avail; his memories seemed to fade after he chanted certain spells from a familiar book. Wait, the book; quickly, he scanned his own room to see if the book was still present. Shun did not have to search further than a meter because said book was actually lying next to his resting pillow, safe and unharmed. He frowned, again.

"...I really thought I left the book in the garage... Hm... Did Ikki bring it—"

"Shun! You're awake!"

His words stopped mid-sentence as the door to his room squeaked open, slowly. The very first thing that he saw was a blur of blue—what he heard, a worried voice. The next thing he knew, Ikki was already standing in front of him, touching his own forehead to test his temperature.

"Feeling fine now? You're not feeling sick, are you?" He asked. Shun, unable to verbally response—because he never really had the chance to see his own brother _this_ worried—, nodded. Again, Ikki frowned at the reaction. "Don't tell you've lost your voice, Shun..."

Certainly, Ikki was dead worried.

"O-of course not, brother!" Shun quickly cut off whatever assumption that was coming next. "Just... a little tired, that's all."

Somewhere in his heart, Shun believed it was not all, but Ikki accepted his reasons anyway without further questioning his own health. He nodded, "good, at least you're back."

"What happened... yesterday?"

Shun's confused look did not make the older brother feel better; if the one who's being tended to forgot why he passed out, then who's the one dropping Shun in front of the apartment and caused a fiasco in the neighborhood? Surely, the younger brother would not remember the culprit. Ikki sighed, "that's what I want to ask you when you regain consciousness. Do you remember anything at all, Shun? At least, who did this to you?"

Shun shook his head; partial lies.

Ikki groaned and then scratched, "great, now how could we track the person who had actually kidnapped you yesterday!"

Whoa, wait, _kidnapped_? Shun's mind was now reeling in. "Brother, really," he pleaded, "if I were kidnapped, I wouldn't be here..."

Ikki only gave him a straight stare and spoke again, "Alright, perhaps you were not necessarily kidnapped. You were lying in front of apartment entrance door. Whoever dropped you there was nice enough to ring the bell and left you out cold outside," he replied tonelessly, but still slightly filled with anger.

Shun blinked, "actually, brother... I am pretty sure that I passed out in the garage. Perhaps someone in the neighborhood noticed my absence and decided to move me on the entrance?"

Ikki made a look and pinched the bridge of his eyebrows. How could his brother land on such conclusion anyway? If the neighbors are that concerned, they would not even left Shun without properly meeting the apartment caretaker! Sometimes, Ikki could not comprehend how his brother could have positive detriments to everybody. "Your reasoning does not make any sense."

Shun shrugged sheepishly on his own bed. His sight quickly laid on the book next to his pillow and brought it to his side. "Ikki, did you..." he paused for a moment. He was sure that the book is in the garage the night he passed out, so either Ikki fetched it or it came out into his room on its own. The latter seemed impossible. "...did you fetch this book from the garage?"

Ikki made a face and crossed both of his hands. "No. You were holding it tightly when we found you in the entrance. It's yours, isn't it?"

"No, it's not..."

Ikki raised an eyebrow. "...well, if it's not yours, I suggest you keep it until we found the owner," he finalized as he walked away from his little brother, fetching dirty laundry nest to his bed. "Oh, I almost forgot. Those three friends of yours came today, actually. If it's not for your condition, I would have let them see you."

"They did?" Shun blinked. His eyes quickly darted at a small clock on top of his mini television. He groaned; it was already past two in the afternoon which means he skipped school. That also explained why his stomach growled loudly then. Shun blushed a bit, and his brother only smiled slightly.

"They did. I'll go get something to eat. You'd better wait _patiently_, Shun. And what I mean, don't even move from this room."

Again, said younger brother could only smile sheepishly as his older brother closed the door. Shun could hear his brothers footsteps faded away, added by the sound of a closing door. His brother was searching _bento_ for the both of them then. Just realizing such fact made him feel down; usually, it was either him or his brother who made lunch. If his brother took measures to buy ready-to-eat _bento,_ then he was too busy worrying himself. All this guilt made him want to move out of the room.

It's not like he was not well and any form. A bit fatigue, yes, but that just did not justify him to stay still inside his own room. Fatigue aside, Shun was still sure that his brother had not finished house chores, part of it because of him worrying over his well-being. Should that really be what happened... well, he had more reasons to patch up work, right?

"I wouldn't suggest you to tire yourself out, master. My summoning should have knocked you out cold.. at least until tomorrow."

Shun could not help but yelped, of course, as he peeped at his left side and saw an unrecognizable man with long blue hair, clad in golden armor. In short, the man he saw then was simply the real version on his dream. His eyes widened, "you! Who—how—"

The man did not smile. In stead, he bowed deeply and still managed to make a firm expression. "I really hoped you sleep well, master. Just to let you know and remember once more, I am Albafica of Pisces, Caster class in this game."

His head was spinning once more. Caster? Game? Pisces? He never summoned someone for anything unnecessary such as a game! "But I did not summon you—" Shun did not continue his words as realization dawned upon him: the magic circle, incantation, and the book. Why did he not realize it sooner!

"Wait... you mean, you..." his mouth was still uttering words he could not explained; his mind was racing. "...came from the magic circle?"

At least, by the time he finished his sentence, Shun quickly remembered what really happened last night: the swirling red petals, the cold stagnant air in the garage, and also... the rich tenor voice which had asked his confirmation on being a master or not. Standing before him was the same man which he had seen last night and, perhaps, was the same man who had dropped him in front of the apartment entrance.

"...it's as you said, master," he nodded. Somewhere alone that line, Albafica's gaze deformed from humbleness to haughtiness. "To prepare for the upcoming game, we servants heed your call, the summoner. Surely, you are aware of the details, given your ability to—"

"Wait, wait, waaaaait!" Shun quickly exclaimed as his mind tried to follow the man's words, "please Sir, I don't really understand what you're talking about! Game? Servants? Summoner? Look, I know you're lost, but certainly, there should be something which you can remember onto? Then maybe, I could help you..."

Simply put, Shun did not believe a single word that came from this man. Later, he would probably regret his decision. As Albafica stared at the figure of his so-called master, he sighed heavily.

"...what am I going to do..."

* * *

><p>"...I can't believe I'm stuck with a summoner who didn't even look at the game rules..."<p>

"Hey!" Shun blushed at the comment—and couldn't help it. Well, he's partially in fault anyway for belittling the consequences that may ensue later on. "I just can not help it! I thought it was a cookbook!"

"Yeah. And then you drew a magic circle because you think it's a cookbook? Honestly, I think it's not even logical," Albafica cut off again. "Please read the book more throughly, master, just to make sure that you understand."

Shun couldn't help but blush deeper and, as his 'servant' demanded, read the book once more—the same book which he use as reference to make the magic circle. The first page, frankly titled as _'drawing__ magic __circle __for __beginners_' was written on bold, but still in the same letter size with body of the text. That alone made him somewhat relief; at least he could blame the book for not providing a more decent letter size, because he would not even start to follow the instructions if he had not missed the title. Shun sighed; there's nothing he could do except for following this problem, wherever it's going.

The next page, he noticed, was about the rules of the game. His eyebrow rose. "So basically, this book is called the book of summon and is used by the user to control their flow of his inner energy—the _cosmo_. It served as some sort of manual during Khronos Game..."

"Also," he continued again, and his eyes did not sit still inside its socket, "the book is a valid proof for the participant of the game and could not be used by other than the original owner. The book also hold supremacy over the life of servant and fed on the user's _cosmo_ to sustain the form of the servant..."

He stopped. "...I think I missed something important, like..." he eyed Albafica briefly, forehead shriveled. "What the heck is Khronos Game. This book did not even describe it!"

Albafica sighed, "It was assumed that anyone who held this book will have at least bare knowledge on Khronos Game. I can't believe I'm stuck with an _amateur__—_"

By then, Shun already closed the book and tossed it off on his bed. He glared, simply annoyed by how this man acted before him. Couldn't Albafica just be done with his grovelling and accepted the fact that he's stuck with Shun, as much as Shun's stuck with him?

"Look, I really wanted to help you in this, but complaining would not even get us _anywhere_!" Shun finally said and crossed his limbs. "So, unless you start talking, I wouldn't be able to see how important this _game_ to you!"

There was a brief silent after Shun's bold exclamation—a very blatant move, even for him. Both exchange hard looks, not wanting to admit or yield to the other's reasoning, out of pride of course. The silent was deafening, at least until Albafica sighed again.

"You make a good point," he started and cleared his throat, "staying like this would not help anyone—not even me or you. The more you are informed, seeing you as my current master, the better for us. What do you want to ask?"

Shun nodded in agreement and relief. He was not really sure that his last straw would yield better result than this. "About this Khronos Game. What is this?"

"Khronos Game..." he stared at the book absentmindedly, trying to recall something important. However, the blank look on his face indicated him to be lost as well. "Do you know Khronos, the god of time?"

He could see Shun shaking his head. Albafica stared at him as if he was an alien from another planet. "Khronos is one of the _protogenoi_—great gods—in the Greek mythology. Never mix it up with the king of Titans, Cronus, though. He guarded time and constantly watched over this world—history and future. So far, do you follow me?"

Shun was practically being a good boy and paid attention to what his 'servant' said. Albafica nodded. "For his entertainment, Khronos organized this game. Of course, it's not without a prize." he raised his hand and flicked some strands of his blue hair which covered his vision. "In the game is practically a battle royal of servants—poor souls of holy warriors who could not rest and made negotiations with the god of time himself. Servants are later called by the summoners who have the power to call out to their inner power—the _cosmo."_

"...god, I don't know what to believe—you here, or your story—"

"You would deny _me?_ I am quite the living proof of this game!_"_

The screeching intonation made Shun squirmed silently. His worry, however, doubled as Albafica's stare hardened and focused... to something more concrete outside of the room. Suddenly, he quickly sought outside the room from the window, as if trying to determine something invisible. This perturbed Shun, who was still halfheartedly believe what he was told.

"He's here."

"Who's here?"

There was traces of worry in the eyes of the older man as he looked at Shun. "Another servant."

* * *

><p>A tall and proud man, standing right on the electrical pole <em>just<em> to observe another servant... Saber felt it to be very humiliating. There he was, standing where his master ought him to be, _doing __nothing_, while his prey was still in sight and oblivious with his surrounding. Sometimes, he wondered whether the bearer of that gold cloth was even the real thing—an opponent who could bring him an honorary fight.

The servant, Saber, scowled. His acquaintance could do better than this.

"What are you trying to orchestrate, really..." he whispered to no one, particularly annoyed. Again, he continued to observe these two characters who happened to be participants of the game as well, bored to death. His hand ached for action, but it's nothing compared to the wait which he had to experience in the timeless limbo created by Khronos, specially-made for the servants.

Oh, and look here, the servant just actually realized his present. Saber scowled, knowing the armor which that servant wore but no recognizing the wearer. Then, the best conclusion is that this person is from another timeline—like how Khronos would want this game to be. Battle Royal of seven holy warriors from various timelines.

The other servant had decided to bring himself outside, along with the green-haired teen. Saber was not amused; but then again, that could be the best and worst thing to do. Servants could not afford to leave the master's side after all.

He was rather surprised when the person seemed to recognize him, though. Then again, what he wore right then was particularly known to those clad in such golden armor.

"Capricorn El Cid, you also entered?" He started, and Saber only lifted an eyebrow. "I never expected you to be one full of life's regret."

Saber scowled, but not because of Albafica's comment. "Enough chatter. You were a Pisces saint, I presume. But I do not recognize you as part of our line, hence... you're not from my timeline," he said matter-of-factly as he lifted his right hand. Albafica quickly stepped in, protecting his master behind his back. In his right hand, a stem of black rose materialized, ready to be thrown; ready to eat anything in its way.

"I see that Khronos wiped your memories clean, Capricorn," Albafica smirked. "I was looking forward for a heart-wrenching reunion... but no, Khronos did not make this game just for out convenience."

"Deluded fish," he stated back, earning an annoyed look from the blue-haired former saint, "who are we to know of god's judgement? You're here because you made a deal with the god of time. All of us are. You'd better be prepared of what that entailed."

Albafica managed a snort—a haughty one that made Shun squirmed behind him uncomfortably. "Capricorns. Always the rigid ones," Albafica groaned, pointing his black rose to the other servant. "You better be ready, El Cid." The single stalk of black rose flew quickly towards its designated target, but only to be scattered by an invisible force. Shun's eyes widened, because he was sure that Saber just swayed his right arm to the rose (what can a single rose do, anyway?). It did not even touch the black rose at the slightest.

Albafica chuckled. "I see your Excalibur did not lose its sharpness."

Saber smirked, "What is a blade if it's not constantly honed?" He continued, staring at his enemy—the gaze so fierce that it may split his enemy in two if it was the holy sword. "And I will make sure to drill my name in your head, Pisces. It's Shura of Capricorn."

**[To Be Continued]**

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** No, it's not El Cid. And yes, Capricorns tend to be so uptight in the series, which I completely and utterly agreed (being a capricorn myself, LOL). And no, this Khronos which is used in the plot is not the Titan who married to Rhea and gave birth to the first 6 Olympians, no. I was surprised to know that both is different gods altogether, so yeah. And yeah, as far as it could be, this story borrows grail system of Fate series to some extent.


	3. Chapter II: Game

**Disclaimer:** Fate and Saint Seiya Lost Canvas series do not belong to me. They belong to TYPE-MOON and Masami Kurumada (though it was drawn by Shiori Teshirogi, the world is basically Kurumada's) respectively. I take no profit in the making of this fan fiction, but still hope for some feedbacks from the reviewer. And yes, though not the exact copy, this line is copied from earlier chapters ;)

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><p><strong>Chapter II: Game<strong>

After several seconds of introduction, Shun could feel the constantly changing pressure in the air—a sensation of adrenaline rush, combined with thrill of being in the brink of life and death. Perhaps he was exaggerating, but after he felt an invisible force trying to slash him in two right on his face, he realized that the battle was real. The next thing he knew, he was being carried by his own servant just to prevent him from getting cut into pieces. Some blue strands sticked to his shoulders, and Shun noticed that his servant did not escape unscathed.

At most, Albafica's side hair was half-cut.

"Master," Shun quickly leered at the man who was still carrying him bridal-style, "for your own safety, I must advise you to take cover in the building."

Shun heard him perfectly; he was about to be sent away, like damsel in distress, and would not join the fight. He stared back and spoke, "that's a very bad idea," and next, pointed out his summoner's book, which had been safely-guarded in his arms. "He's pursuing this book as well, the source of energy to your existence, here. Leaving me in the building would lure him inside—and I really don't want to involve other people in this matter—"

This time, Albafica moved again as he tried to avoid another _Excalibur _which was raised against them, effectively standing on an electrical pole 10 meters from his enemy.

"I'm _still _a saint of Athena, master!" he exclaimed and dropped down from the heights, so that Shun could stand on his own. "I swore to fight for my pride as a Pisces saint—and my pride tells me to protect you all."

"What about you?"

Albafica's eyebrows furrowed. Yes, it was his master asking whether he could stand against a servant of such caliber, in a concerned manner. "I'll fight," he said as he summoned his demon roses out of thin air, ready to strike at Shura, who was standing by an electric pole 3 meters away. "And I will not lose." He finalized. By the time he convinced Shun to enter the building, the roses which he had summoned before flew straight towards Saber, but to no effect. Shura just simply threw several slashes of the holy sword to scatter the menacing roses away.

"...you cannot defeat me with just those roses, Pisces," Shura stated calmly and dropped down from the pole, "Care to tell me where are your others? Or perhaps your master did not pass you the art of tending other type of roses? Pitiful, really."

If there's something that could set his anger wick ablaze, then it would be when his master is also included in the topic. Albafica stood, covering his master so that Shun could run into the building, and later glanced at the holy sword user. "Master Lugonis taught me the ways of Pisces," he stated back, summoning his roses once more: the Royal Demon Roses.

"I will make sure that you see every technique which he passed down to me, as his successor!"

* * *

><p>Unlike what he expected, Shun heard almost nothing from the outside. Several people inside the apartment building were already asleep and, miraculously, not bothered by the sound of force which destroyed the roads, or even Albafica's shriek as he tried shooting several roses; all of them could only be heard if one bent hisher head outside the room.

For better of worse, he could only wait as the clash died down. But could he really do that, watching the other fight for him as he was delivered to safety?

Shun peeked outside, only to have several strands of his hair cut due to extreme pressure and force of a single Excalibur, almost severing his head in entirety should he put out his head more. Quickly, he scanned the area outside, only to be glared by Shura the Saber. The way he lifted his hand up signaled him to 'move away or die', and he did. Again, another Excalibur launched at where he once sat, which was meant to cut him in half.

"Saber!" a familiar yelp, and Shun could smell the sweet fragrance of roses in the air. The second thing that he noticed was the back of his servant, as he faced his enemy as well as protecting him. "You're going too far, aren't you?"

Shun did not like the deathly aura, enveloping the figure of his own servant. As he tried to suck in air, Albafica said ardently, "Crimson Thorn!"

It was magnificent—or simply terrifying. Hundreds of red needles came out of nowhere, floating around his servants as they lurched forward toward Saber without hesitation. Shun could see the horror in Saber's face, before being struck down by hundreds of crimson needles, rendering the latter immobilized. Saber slumped to the ground after such vicious blows.

Shun noted that Albafica lost his normal breathing pace as well. To his surprise, the servant's right hand was bleeding heavily. When he approached the latter, he could hear Albafica half-pantingly screeched, "stay away"

"But you're hurt!"

"_Don't. Touch. Me!_"

The hostile tone might unnerve Shun a bit, but seeing the condition of his own servant, trying hard to keep his normal composure... it's enough for him to lurch forward and bring Albafica to the floor by dragging his left hand. However, as his touch even grazed the servant's shoulder, Albafica roughly pushed him away and glared viciously. Shun glared back. "I want to help!"

"Help me by staying away! Don't you know that my blood is gravely _poisonous_?"

Of course not. After hearing his reason, however, Shun agreed to back down a bit. "What can I do then? Oh wait!" Again, the green haired boy quickly opened the black guidebook, and scanned it quickly. "It's said here that Khronos bestow one chance for the servant to do... _anything_. Wait, that does not sound right at all."

Albafica was already panting heavily when his master, again, sought through the book. His battle instinct tingled once more, as if knowing that something is not right. The bits about Khronos bestowing one chance to the servant was making him unnerved; if it were true, the last thing that he could come up with—should a master use this _one chance_ to his servant—then, the next thing would be... resurrection of the servant. Another half-wind; second chance.

They could hear a loud bang outside. Albafica was the first to cocked his head outside to see what has happened. His eyes widened as he witnessed the most impossible thing he could think of. Saber—Shura of Capricorn—was heavily panting and still alive, even after receiving hundreds of his bloodied crimson thorns.

To make matters more complicated, Saber was standing with another figure; a tall man with italian streak, blue hair, and an angry expression on his face. What sent chills to his backbone was his indifferent expression as their gazes met. When that person saw Albafica as a mere Caster, the latter saw his late companion.

Albafica saw Manigoldo of Cancer.

Without golden armor, to be precise. The fact that he's wearing casual jeans with brown shirt while holding a green book, similar to what Shun has, quickly clouded Albafica's mind; here, in this world, he could see his own companion from his timeline, standing as the master of Saber. Khronos sure had an ironic sense of humor.

"I thought I said that you would not attack the target unless I said so, idiot!" The man shrieked, with expression of holding back his fisted hand. "Now look what you've made me do! Waste of time..."

Saber hung his head low and coughed up some more blood, "my apologies, master... it won't happen again."

Manigoldo seemed like wanting to shoot his servant down by his own hand. "Damn right it won't! I'll return you to Khronos personally if you kept abandoning orders." He snarled yet again, and then turned towards the other two with indignant glare. "As for you, Caster, it isn't over—yet!"

Albafica clenched his teeth as he watched how Manigoldo addressed him without his name. Surely, would he be addressing with his proper name as a saint? Or has the world changed so much due to Khronos' interference? The god could bend time—hence, he could bend space, alternate reality, and so on. His train of thought was cut short when Manigoldo whispered several words firmly—what he noticed as magical incantation—and created a bluish circle pattern on the ground, before vanishing in blue light, alongside with his servant.

"Teleportation magic. We're lucky. That man was also a magician—," he inadvertently sighed but was cut short as Shun quickly gripped Albafica's right shoulder's joint. The latter squirmed a little, while red quickly stained the hand of his green-haired master. Shun frowned, evidently displeased.

"An open wound _and _a disjointed juncture? Get down, Albafica. You need proper treatment."

Albafica gritted his teeth once more; his other hand tried to force away his master's hand. What if he was killed due to blood contact? Didn't he tell him beforehand that his blood is severely dangerous? Even so, when his master gripped the joint tighter, Albafica could not help but squirmed, with his thoughts focused on trying to get away from his master's grip.

"It's _fine,_" he screeched, lowly, and pushed Shun's hand away. He glared, but only to be glared back. "I can take care of myself, master. It's _you_ who should be careful!"

Unexpectedly, his master only smiled warmly and pointed at his game book with his—glowing?—right hand. "In the book, it was stated that every master cannot be harmed by passive skills of his or her own servant. That means, your poisonous quality will not harm me as your master. So, hold still while I patch your juncture first."

Albafica was about to recoil a comeback, but held back. His attention was drawn to Shun's glowing hand—_cosmo_. Unlike any human cosmo, though, Albafica could sense etherial countenance; otherworldly, but still gentle. He was reminded of Athena for a while, before recognizing to whom that cosmo belonged: Khronos. The cosmo was almost similar, but the manipulative streak which it possessed surely would no belong to the guardian goddess of mankind.

Shun quickly set his left arm right without giving any sign, which made the servant winced under his breath, clearly refusing to show any weakness before his own master. He glared, as though saying, '_tell me first when you do that._' Seeing Shun's unnerving smile, however, made him think more; this boy, sitting on the floor, was basically _trying _to keep his frustrations under control, and he, to some extent, could feel the frustrations of not being able to help his own servant more than putting his shoulder joint back to proper place.

Albafica let out a deep sigh.

"Shun," he started, using his master's name rather than his proper honorific, "It's enough. The cuts will heal. Please don't strain yourself. You're barely sitting right."

"I'm fine. I can still—" but Shun's words were cut short as he feel limp on Albafica's lap, throughly drained and raggedly breathed. Albafica quickly caught his falling master with his uninjured arm, just to make sure the latter would not touched his blood further. While god's words bear truth, the Caster could not find in his right mind to trust Khronos' words for granted. Who knows if his blood is still lethal even to his own master? Who could guarantee that Khronos' protection will last without several unknown conditions? Perhaps he was just being paranoid. Then again, a life of extreme solitude made such man.

Shun did not lose his consciousness, because Albafica could still feel the anxiousness—and fear—that still linger. "What happened? I could not move—!"

Albafica frowned. Is this because of his own blood? "You're not feeling nauseous, are you?"

Shun did tried his hardest to shake his head, only to have it wiggled slightly. Paralysis, he concluded—something which his blood could not do. Well, how could his enemies get paralyzed if the first thing that would ever happen to them when ingesting his own blood was vomiting and haemorrhaging until death knocks? Then, the other possibility will be.. extensive use of _cosmo._

…

"Despite having your _cosmo_ drained, you still have the strength to talk," he mused, "perhaps you're not such an amateur after all." Slowly, the latter hold tight his master, put him to his bed (they _were _in Shun's room after all), and knelt beside him. "It's what happen would happen when you overuse your _cosmo._"

Albafica rose his right eyebrow; he could see the palpable questioning expression, rising from his master. Yet, Shun did not attempt to ask himself—or at least, Albafica noticed him _trying_. "Don't push yourself. It will do more harm than good. Take my advice and leave it there."

He received a glare, but really, had he paid him concern over trivial silent remark so far? No. Will he yield to such? No, not really. This is his pride talking, and his pride told him not to bow to anyone without power—at least, he would not bow to his own master when he could not even utter a word. Mind you, he's still bound with his honor as saint of Athena. Traitorous act—such as _killing _one's own master due to personal gains—is not permitted within Athena's order. Beside, what could a servant gain from killing his or her own servant?

"Yes, yes, I could read it in your face. You're confused on the topic of _cosmo," _once again, Albafica's eyebrow rose, while his lips formed a swift frown, "don't give me that look and stay relaxed."

To his amusement, Shun half-heartedly agree.

"...Now, about cosmo," he sighed with eyes fixed on his master's hand; the one which had tried to heal him, and been currently limped by his side, "it is the force that flows within every living creature, and that includes every spiritual and magical being. It's the most basic energy that constitute the foundations of wonders, miracles, and magic."

Shun was still staring at him as he trailed off, "this source of power, however, is not easily harnessed. Everybody may have a source, but to actually withdraw it requires extreme trainings of mind and body. Many do not succeed—yes, many died in the process," he corrected his words and saw his master cringed, "however, for those who succeed, they could create wonders through their power. Many had revered this men as saviors, saints, wizards, and even miracle makers."

Shun's thoughts wondered on many things; then the legendary myth of hercules, the magicians of old... all of them used cosmo?

Shun heard his servant cleared his throat, ready to continue his story, "Some are born to access that power. Simply put, they're what you called geniuses. But most of this... kinds..." Shun could feel the begrudging tone which Albafica bore in his words, "are naturally born magicians. Wicked magicians, defilers—"

Shun shot out a glare, one more time, and Albafica snorted silently as a response, "as I was saying, magicians, so drunken by power that most civilizations were destroyed by their own hands," he finished a bit, and sighed once more. Of course, the servant was not going to end his story, yet, as he drew in a gulp of air, "the latter kind—those who are not born to use magic—channel their cosmo through extreme trainings of mind and body. After certain time—I won't tell you the details—those who succeed are able to withstand the... side-effect of channeling your own cosmo—yes, that blue glow on your hand before, so please let me _finish—_, which is what you're experiencing currently."

His tone was deadpanned, like, _it's your own fault_. Albafica did not make any other remarks and stood once more, "it's best for you to rest more. Channeling cosmo is not an easy matter," he said as his feature slowly disintegrated, back to his compact form (which startled Shun with fear, because this is the first time he had seen his servant did that, anyway) until Albafica could nowhere be seen.

Shun let out a heavy sigh that he unknowingly hold.

* * *

><p>Basically, Shun should be sleeping right when his head touch his own pillow. Yet, who has the right mind to sleep so soundly when he was attacked by an unknown assailants, almost died several times due to deadly sword-slash-like compacted air (or was that a <em>beam<em>?), and bombarded by tiny, yet seemingly unimportant, information? Even as his body screamed for rest, Shun could not bring himself to close his eyes and great Hypnos in person.

For the umpteenth time, he closed his eyes, but his mind kept on going on piecing together the information in his mind. Cosmo is the force that establish every magical act. Not every people can harness this kind of power, yet he managed to channel miniscule of it to help him heal his own servant (though in the end he did not even heal the wounds) without ever realizing it. Slowly, Shun raised his hand, as if expecting it to glow again. His had remained the same.

_With such power,_ he thought, _masters of the game will not hesitate to defeat other masters, even at the cost of losing lives..._

His comment was not really baseless. Slowly, he reached out for his book of summoning, carefully tracing the edge of its leaf as he sort on it. Reaching his designated reading bits—parts which relate to _prize—_his eyebrows furrowed, and somewhere in his gut, he wanted to throw up. Inscribed in the pages were the prize of the game—a very terrifying prize that he would not understand why this system was called a _game_.

Khronos will grant any modification of history, through his power and will—defying fates, erasing existence, almost anything. One would gladly kill for this miraculous prize; who else could defy fate instead of Khronos, lord of space and time himself?

Shun cursed under his breath and threw his book away from his reach. The book fell with a small thud, and laid rest next to his study desk, limp and seemingly powerless. He buried his head unto his pillows, hoping that sleep will claim it soon after.

It was after an hour later that his brain managed to shut down. But he did remember a sweet scent of roses, before being plunged into unrest darkness.

**[To be Continued]**

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><p><strong>AN**: Major writer block. Heavy attacks, even. Honestly, I've been working on my project—which use Bahasa as its main program, _linguistically_ speaking—so hard that I kinda forgot this story. Besides, this part is also the hardest I have ever made! Shun was no goodie-goodie guy in this story, just something he got from his own older brother.

So yeah, it's not. Why the change of personality? You'll find out later *smirk*


	4. Chapter III: PostMortem, PreDoom

**Disclaimer:** Fate and Saint Seiya Lost Canvas series do not belong to me. They belong to TYPE-MOON and Masami Kurumada (though it was drawn by Shiori Teshirogi, the world is basically Kurumada's) respectively. I take no profit in the making of this fan fiction, but still hope for some feedbacks from the reviewer.

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><p><strong>Chapter III: Post-Mortem, Pre-Doom<strong>

What turned out to be an unrest sleep, Shun had it worse.

With so much going inside his mind, he really hoped that he would get the rest that he deserved. Yet, even as the strain got into his whole body, urging him to rest after handful life-and-death situations, the heavy strain clouded his mind. To make matters worse, the pain—the mental pain—was directing him towards something that he should not see. By the time he realized, he's within a dream. It was never his dream, because he never felt that much of pain, loneliness, and pride as his vision displayed a vast area of blood-red rose.

This was not his dream.

Shun felt his legs move, bringing him across the garden. Sweet scent of rose—somehow mixed with blood—attacked his nostrils, but he was not really bothered. Or rather, his _host _was not really bothered. Shun was trying to contain his nausea as his host stride forward. In this dream, he just watched as his action was not his, but could feel the wind gently caressing his cheek, or heard rose leafs rustling against each other. When his feet stop moving, he sensed danger approaching right at him, waging lives—trying to trample the lives that he must protect.

His body moved, once more, toward a broken marble pillar, not far away from where he stood. His gaze was still fixated at the entrance of his—yes, _his_—rose garden as he sat nonchalantly, patiently ready to greet his enemies. By all means, all of them would die the moment they set their feet inside the garden. Their bodies would become a mere death count for every evil being which he had beheaded and killed.

Kill. No matter how noble his friends thought of this war, in the end, it would always _kill _or_ be killed_.

As he watched the entrance of his rose garden vividly, at last, his eyes noticed a group of people—no, _monsters_—clad in black metal. His nose tinged; it throughly detested the aura which those cloth held: corpse stenches. These _warriors_ reeked of death, and one of them, he sensed, was curious and eager to take his life.

But he would not fall here.

"Welcome," he said strangely in mysterious and alluring tone, "to my garden."

* * *

><p>While his own younger brother was busy with his dreamworld, Ikki decided that it was high time for him to rise. He had hoped that his younger brother did not move away from his own room and was torn between feeling glad or terrified. He should feel glad, because the latter stayed in his room, currently was sleeping <em>again <em>after a nasty 12-hour knocked-out time. Why he should feel terrified: asphalt road outside the building was mysteriously broken (more like _slashed_?) by something, entrance of the building had been sealed by bold debris, and the walls in the outer rim of the window framed had scratches (deep scratches)... which was not supposed to be there in the first place.

Basically speaking: the color of Ikki's face was drained when he saw what was left, and within 5 minutes, it came back when he saw Shun, squirming uncomfortably on bed.

He really needed an explanation on this. Somehow, he was convinced that Shun would not give off any answers; the younger brother was sleeping through the whole ordeal, so why would he know, right?

"You get some good dreams, Shun," he said softly and put down a glass of water on the bed stand. Ikki smiled smiled in relief and ruffled Shun's head, more like a form of worry, "I still have some things to do. ...you know to call when you need me, of course."

Again, he smiled in relief and gingerly encircled a red book with similar texture and features of Shun's book of summoning with his left hand. Ikki never noticed the black glow behind his back, imitating a shadow of a bird, as he walked out of the room gingerly.

* * *

><p>Another tiny information: Shun had the same dream for the last three days, even though the events were all jumbled. While the details remained the same, the scene before him jumped so randomly that he could not predict the next scene in his dream. First, it was the rose garden, then a room with purple-haired lady standing before him, then a blank space. When he wondered whether the dream had ended, the scene shifted again; the blank space turned into walled building.<p>

This part was not in his previous dreams.

"I see that you have arrived!"

His mind raced, and the boy—still in the visage of the blue-haired man—turned towards the direction of the person who stated it. It was a man, dressed in black suit with alluring gentleman nature. His black hair was trimmed in a pageboy style, giving an aura that of boy in an old man's visage. Shun sensed something was not right, as if the figure reflected thousand years of life in a single existence: the beginning, the middle, and the end.

The man raised his eyebrows and quirked an amused smile. Perhaps it was something about Shun's face. "Welcome, hero, to my humble sanctuary."

Though his voice was light, the air around them stopped for a moment and sent a chill to his spine. The stone wall around them shimmered slightly, revealing various scenes of many people: about wars, famines, tragedy, triumphs—all of_ possible _human histories.

When he blinked, the person in front of him was already sitting on a stone chair, complete with its armrest. He was still standing in front of him with only an awareness that this man is _powerful_. His aura enticed Shun to bow down—but his body won't budge. Then, the man laughed, whether to Shun's obliviousness or inability to take a respectful bow.

"You don't have to be so stiff!" he said again and waved his hand. A wooden stool with greek embellishment suddenly appeared right behind him. "Go on, sit! It's not booby-trapped, of course. Unlike certain god of thievery that I know..." he spoke again, then mumbled something about trickery and nosiness.

Shun silently sat while casting an uneasy glance to the man before him. Shun felt that he should not be sitting here; with the power that this person wield, he should be bowing—no, _genuflecting_—within his sight. Apparently, the man realized that he had been watched, and only dismissed Shun's uneasiness—which did not really happen and only added up his anxiety—with a wave of his hand.

"First, do you remember who you are, hero?"

Shun spoke, but the name came up wrong, "I am Albafica, Athena's Pisces Saint of 18th century."

He clapped his hand once as his expression changed from neutral into amusement, "wonderful! I thought there will never be anyone to pass Asphodel without forgetting _everything_." he paused, examining Albafica's figure—currently Shun's vessel—from head to toe, who was then dressed in brown cotton shirt and black trousers, as though trying to determine what he should ask. "Do you remember how you died?"

There was a short pause as Shun sucked in a hard breath. Shun felt bitterness rising from the back of his tongue. "I died during Griffon Minos' siege of Sanctuary," he paused, trying hard not to drown his next words in hateful spite, "he killed me."

The figure nodded almost cheerfully even when he realized that Albafica explained his own tragedy. "Excellent! Then I expected you to know what this is, hm?" He extended his hand towards the saint. A bulb of white light slowly formed on the man's palm. When the man realized that Shun was not gaining any insight, he raised an eyebrow, "Nothing? Not even a small insight? _Nada_? Sheesh, humans and their ignorance..."

Again, mumbles turned into scowls. Shun waited a little longer for this man's mumbled to subside.

"What I offer to you, m'boy," he continued in his bright and light tone, "is a chance of a lifetime! Well, in your _after_-lifetime, but a chance, nonetheless!"

The man smirked. Shun did not like the gleam on this man's smile. That gleam showed a more childish, self-centered, nature who only liked changes—_mad _changes. He continued to observe this figure as he clenched his hand, smiting the light on his palms into little bits. Those bits did not disintegrate as he thought they would, but slowly condensing to form a small screen. To Shun's surprise, he could see himself walking down the road, greeting his friends and family. The scene subtly changed towards his brother, the city-folks, and then... the earth.

Shun shifted uncomfortably as his vessel asked again, "what is it that you offer?"

"Why of course, a second chance! To correct your mistake, to prevent the man who had killed you, _well_, from ending your life!" he chirped, as though what deemed to be impossible become possible just through the will of this man, the walls began flickering once more, showing scenery of war and siege... and Albafica's death. Dread and spite quickly filled up the boy's head, and left as quick as it came.

The figure, still let out his mad smirk—something that Shun could not grow accustomed with. Yet suddenly, there was a sliver feeling of relief, revenge, and hope, swirling together in his heart and mind. _I could take this opportunity and correct things as it should be,_ Shun thought, though it was more to Albafica's echo than his own remark. Personally, he would not take anything for granted from this man.

"At what cost?"

Shun was sure that he see a sly smirk.

"None! Well, there's this game that you have to sign up. I need a good entertainment! It's been so hollow in these recent years of solitude! ...not that time had any effect here. I _am _time!"

A low rumble-perhaps because of the man's low-voiced laughter?-filled the room, and the wall surrounding both figures flickered more, shifting the scenes fixedly on Albafica's last moment: the moment he died due to blood loss. He could feel his heart was filled with remorse and terror at the sight. The wall flickered some more and then reverted to its original form.

Albafica stoically glanced at the figure, though hollowness and dread seems to paint his face. He paused for a moment and subsequently rose from his chair. The saint then genuflected right before the man with a bow so low that Shun never thought one such as Albafica would do it, judging how haughty he viewed him as.

"I..." the words stopped midair, but he continued after a moment reprieve, "...accept your most gracious offer, Lord Khronos... companion of 'inevitability'... and the lord of time."

The figure—Khronos—smiled triumphantly and left Shun more unease. Perhaps he was imagining things, because he felt Khronos _smiled_ to him, not to the vessel who had been watching from the sidelines. The scene before him slowly blackened. Voices were reduced to silence, but Shun swore under his breath that Khronos named the cost of this game, but the information was lost in the deep blankness.

* * *

><p>Shun never remembered what exactly came up later: the blankness or the earful ring of his own morning alarm. Whichever was it, that did not stop him from sounding it off and slowly climbed down from his bed. His blanket was laid in a mess on the floor. Ikki's already calling; a valid action, because Shun was late.<p>

Scratch that; he was _super _late. He quickly rose from his bed and headed for the shower. The green-haired teen noticed a lingering presence in the back of his mind—it was probably Albafica?—and started out his daily routine. For the first time since forever, he needed someone to know about this predicament.

_You can't, master. Information leakage will only endanger your situation!_

Shun dismissed the man's voice and continued for his _quick_ morning routine. Ikki will not like lateness in his wake.

* * *

><p>At least his breakfast was eventful. By the time he entered the living room (which also sufficed for their daily dining), Ikki was more than ready to preach about how he's going to be late. Shun partially dismissed them, knowing the fact that his older brother paid even less attention towards punctuality. After a series of—laid back—lectures, Shun quickly raced for school. Never mind his tired body; his gut feeling told him that he ought to get out from the apartment.<p>

Albafica's dire warnings in the back of his mind did not help calm his nerves either.

"Look, Albafi—," Shun stopped mid-words. Somehow, he could feel spite growing in the back of his mind as he was about to sound the true name of his own servant, "what is it?"

_'Don't call me by that name. Refer me by my class so that, goddess help us, nobody knows my true name.'_

He continued dashing and swiftly took a left turn when he reached a fork road—the path towards his school, passing several people in the road. Shun dared to utter no words; how will those people respond to him, later on? Perhaps, the vegetable (Ikki called him such because of his green hair) boy who dumbly talked to his self.

There was another forked road. Shun dashed to the left, seeing less people around.

"Fine then, _Caster_," he sighed and managed to send a mental imagery of rolling eyes. Perhaps, the latter would understand; he's not amused. "Whatever it is that you want to warn me about, pray tell me, _now_."

'_We've been followed_. _Keep dashing, or else they noticed us._'

Shun frowned. Another forked road—the last one, before he could arrive safely at the school. The teen sighed, "do you know who tracked us down? It's another master, isn't it?"

'_It's _certainly _not Shura_.'

Another master, then. Shun clearly knew that his servant was not finished with his own analysis. He was busily thinking the best course of action while his servant do the analysis: if both parties are forced to a fight, Shun did not want it to involve the school. Hence, he took the opposite direction from the school, straight to the town's central park. Amusingly, the number of people around in the town central park were slim. Shun thanked whatever sorcery caused this.

"Go on," he said unnervingly as he sat quickly on the nearest bench, "how many?"

He could even feel Albafica's mood dropped, '_two. A pair of master and servant.'_

Shun nodded understandingly as he tried discerning any presence near him. If the person was already after him, then it would help to stay still... and concentrate. A servant would spread a sense of concreteness in the air; an air of regality and pride, like how Saber emanated power that struck fear into Shun's being.

That's when a young lady in black showed up out of nowhere and politely greeted him. Her black dress, contrary to the nice weather, suited her dazzlingly even in with such brooding color. The lady also had a black umbrella, safely tucked in her hand. Her long hair waved smoothly as the wind blew; a lady of regality.

"Good morning," she bowed politely. Shun was baffled; he never detected her presence in the first place. Still in a daze, he nodded, stood up, and bowed back. The lady then smiled sweetly, but somehow, _sickly_ innocent.

"Morning to you as well, miss," Shun replied as he tried managing his own composure. By some luck, the servant stated by Albafica had not found its prey, yet. As far as Shun knew, he did not even feel some sort of threatening presence in the area. It's still not a reason to drop his guard.

"Oh dear," she started, eyes fixed on Shun's uniform, "shouldn't you be at school? I thought it's already past the morning bell!"

"Ah, about that," Shun stopped mid-sentence. His mind raced while his pulse fastened. This woman who appeared unknowingly could be the master whom Albafica said of. But that's just wrong; Shun was sure he could not sense any presence of danger from this woman. Brood and gloom (aside her smile), yes, but not danger.

The book of summon inside his backpack did not agree with his thought, though.

The lady frowned with worry, "what is it, dear? Are you hurt somewhere?"

Shun flinched at her worry and met her soft gaze, "no, it's nothing. I was just thinking—"

Somehow, his heart might have leaped. The wind—_normal _wind—stopped blowing for one moment, before he felt another gust from his right side. The lady in front of him gasped as she tried to clutch her long dress from quivering. Many things happened so quickly: Albafica who yelled something about '_move aside!_', another gust of wind, and a sense of weightlessness as someone quickly picked and carried him to another place. By the time he opened his eyes, Shun was already in Albafica's arms, being carried bridal style, and was covered with blood. His servant's blood.

"What happen—ah!"

Shun quickly leaped out of Albafica's care, and was only to be throughly shocked by Albafica's wound. His left foot was _gone, _thrown away at least five feet to his right. As quick as it left before, dread quickly numbed Shun's sense.

And then, he heard a small chuckle.

"Bad Berserker," the voice said, growing nearer, and still retained its light tone, "he's still in pain. Why couldn't you give them a quick painless death?"

Shun managed to turn his head slowly towards the person in speech. Horror and guilt etched his eyes as he saw the lady, standing away from him, still with an innocent smile. Just then he realized something flickered behind her; a tall figure, looming before her with enough wing-span to cover three people altogether, who was camouflaged with magic.

This figure could easily snapped Albafica's right leg.

Impending terror still paralyzed him, even as Albafica's laboriously cried out, '_run!_'. The lady before him was in another level; seemingly angelic, but certainly their executioner.

"Now then," her soft smile suddenly turned into sardonic smirk, "isn't it time for you to meet Thanatos in person, boy?"

The magic around the invisible servant flickered as he approached Shun and his servant. For that single moment, Shun wondered if what people felt before death knocked their doors was fear due to obliteration.

**[To Be Continued]**

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><p><strong>AN: **Can you guess the lady and her servant? I think it's very obvious. Who else is a woman and wears black in SS series? I am still wondering if anybody could guess the identity of Berserker, rather than the lady.


	5. Chapter IV: The Big Bomb

**Disclaimer:** Fate and Saint Seiya Lost Canvas series do not belong to me. They belong to TYPE-MOON and Masami Kurumada (though it was drawn by Shiori Teshirogi, the world is basically Kurumada's) respectively. I take no profit in the making of this fan fiction, but still hope for some feed backs from the reviewer. I'm doing this just for the fun of it, really.

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><p><strong>Chapter IV: The Big Bomb<strong>

If he did not lose his right leg, Albafica would have moved swiftly and bring his master to safety. He was not—and would never be—a man who bowed to his own fear. Yes, Albafica knew fear, but that did not mean he would cower because of it.

What he feared most, however, was the fact that even with his strength, he could not protect _anyone_. He could not even protect the people of Rodorio in his timeline. Would he even yield to this beast?

That single reason alone was the only thing that commanded his body to knelt before his master, even when the shadow of that figure—probably Berserker, like that lady said before—slowly creep on them. His hand raised, showing a protecting—and challenging—position.

He could see the woman raised an eyebrow, perhaps out of amusement.

"Oh, this one is quiet feisty isn't he, Berserker?" she chuckled with that innocent smile. Her sadistic streak was gone, as though someone warped her face to be ten years younger that it should. The lady blinked several times and turned towards her fairly invisible servant and smile quickly formed on her lips, as she said, "what? You want to play? With him?"

At that comment, Albafica sharpened his sense, trying to figure out and anticipate anything that could happen. Of all scenarios which he had thought of in his mind, only one that would guarantee the life of his master. That scenario would require him to sacrifice himself in the process-a lose-win scenario.

There was a groan, a gigantic flap of steeled wing, and later, a big gust. The lady in black once again chuckled and spared them a glance. A _malefic_ glance.

"You can play, Berserker," she trailed off and yawned slowly. Her eyes was assessing the situation, as though ordering a menu—deciding whether the place was all right. "Just make sure you don't leave any eyewitnesses...and the corpses..."

That malefic smile turned into sly smirk.

"Keep the corpses for me. You know how I love new specimens."

That moment, Berserker's silhouette was moving toward where he knelt. His aura got more oppressing as he crept in. Albafica gritted his teeth; even as he knelt before his own master, he knew Shun was struck frozen in his place. His master would not be able to run away, even when he _ordered _him to do so.

Albafica would have to take him down, with him; an impossible task, with no other way around. He did it anyway and started gathering his own strengths in his blood. Slowly, his blood risen from his wound and quickly formed many suspended poisonous needle in the air, trying to pinpoint the vital position of his own enemy. He felt, somehow, a flick of rage in the midst of the heavy wind surrounding their presence—a cue for the Pisces saint to act. In a single yell, those sharpened and compressed liquid lunged towards it's designated target, and that included distortion right in front of him and the lady in black standing haughtily, not far away from their place.

The needles fell before they could even touch her, perhaps due to her shear cosmic power. Or was it just magic? Shun shuddered; he's facing a pair of behemoth with enormous power and strength, and perhaps, they were backed up by battle experiences as well. What hope of survival could both of them have? They were just pigs for slaughter.

For both of them, this was the end.

"Touchy," the woman muttered, "Berserker, finish them please—before they could retaliate."

Without further ado, the first thing that the enormous servant did was lunging himself toward both of them with sheer power. Albafica felt the pressure in the air, as molecules after molecules are spread thinly. This servant's power was overwhelming, bringing despair.

Albafica had failed once—and would fail again. His death (and his master's) would be swift. Regrets filled his mind as the blow, designated for their erasure, came.

Except the pressure momentarily went awry, and their supposedly-slayers are already withdrawing a few feet away from where they stood. Shun could even hear the woman cursed under her breath, who was then sitting onto that berserker's shoulder. Again, he felt another ripples of energy in the air, and his eyes quickly focused once more to the behemoth pair, and then noticed something sticking on the ground. An arrow had been shot to the battleground; Shun could feel more of the would come. He just hoped that they're not aimed at both him and his servant.

But then, Shun was already reaching for his servant.

"Oh God..." Shun muttered. His voice was strained, and only his servant knew better that the master could not handle all that blood, gushing uncomfortably from his system. But Albafica did not wince—nor scream—as his foot was ripped apart.

Shun trembled, though; Albafica was too focused on withholding his pain to comfort his own master. He should try—no, he was obliged to try. In the battlefield, one must not lose his resolve.

"Master—" his voice was hoarse with pain and the servant cursed in his heart for his lack of power; Shun quickly grabbed his shoulder with worry written all over his face. "—I will—be fine. Please _run—_"

Apparently, the green-haired master did not pay any attention towards said person as he descended upon Albafica's severed limb. Even then, he was shaking almost uncontrollably. All of his body languages signaled his nervousness, trauma, and perturbation—but beneath all that lies determination and, above all, willingness and altruism.

"We... we must stop the bleeding first..." the green-haired boy stuttered as he scanned through his own black book. The behemoth was still busy in dodging whatever that tried to hit them and had gone as far as to fly towards the source (but that monstrous calamity was severely impended by hundreds arrows of light, though). No, he could not focus upon their fight; before transporting Albafica, he would have to stop the bleeding first. However, as his searching eyes view the pages over and over, anything that could be _helpful_ was just not there. _Nothing_.

Shun threw the book away.

"Nothing!" he slammed his fist to the ground, eyeing Albafica in regrets—in which said gesture was replied with anger and spite.

"Are you _blind_?" Albafica screeched, decidedly annoyed at the stupidity of his own master. At this important time, Shun should be _running._ "You have to _go_!"

Berserker's and his master's rage sounded in the background: overwhelming screams and notable curses, mixed with flashes of gold and purple. Apparently, their attacker was busily handling themselves from another attacker, which they could not identify—yet. And if the enemy is capable of distracting the behemoth, the Caster servant could somehow gauge the power or craftiness of whoever currently contending with Berserker.

Albafica already assumed that _they _are after them as well. With Shun refusing to _move_, his chance of survival would be slim.

"And leave you _here_, bleeding to death?"

"_Yes_!"

Shun stared at his servant—the only one that saved him from severe destruction just the night before—with unshakable determination before actually tried pulling the latter to stand, at least on his other foot. The boy quickly bolstered the man, though his first step made him unsteady.

"I'm running—but not without you."

Just as his words spurred out from his lips, both of them felt that enormous presence, again, inching towards their position. Albafica feared the worst may have happened, and confirmed it to be true; several meters over, Berserker was still evading his attacker's assault, expelling such huge cosmo that even made the former Pisces Saint churned. He knew Shun would fall to his knees due to the intense cosmic pressure.

The boy fell, and Albafica became the one who supported him, even with only his one leg.

"I told—you to run—didn't I? Idiot."

Berserker was building his power to obliterate his target. Glowing purplish cosmo filled the air as gigantic orb began to fill the monster's hand; a single strike that will obliterate everything before the figure—and everything below.

There's nothing that can be done. Albafica might have to accept the outcome that both of them will perish in that place. He refused to fail here, just like how he refused to die during Rodorio's raid.

But what can a single human do in the face of death?

* * *

><p>Shun could see through details in a glimpse—and their current situation was crystal clear: they were facing impending doom head on. Even as Berserker concentrated his cosmos onto his gigantic orb, Shun instinctively knew that the moment it was released, he and his servant will be blasted due to shock-waves.<p>

By the time his trail of thoughts ended, the Berserker cried beastly and released the orb towards the nearest building—the one which cover his attacker.

Many things happened in a flash; the targeted building collapsed due to the sever blasts, knocking heavy dusts on the ground. At least both Shun and Albafica gained zero-visibility, even though the Caster doubted it would serve any purpose. The only thing that he could do was erecting a form of small barrier surrounding both him and his master, using his own blood, to protect them from other harm.

"Shun? Shun!" he exclaimed harshly and shook hard the shivering boy, but Shun did not respond. The green-haired boy was so scared that he was debilitated. The servant gritted his teeth.

And then, there was a soft wind—and a soft cosmo.

Albafica quickly threw his attention to the incoming and unknown source of cosmo, quickly landing from the sky above. The lithe figure was definitely not that Berserker; while the golden gleams of this figure's armor left him an encouraging presence, the Caster knew that he must put his guard up. Even in the face of another once gold saint, in this game... old friends are made enemies. That included the once-proclaimed Sagittarius saint, landing before him.

Even so, Albafica could not deny the smile which formed on his feature. "I should have known it's you."

The former Sagittarius saint smiled back; his short brown hair waved calmly, even as the Berserker regained its attention on the group. His smile turned to grimace as he glanced at the sky, where the Berserker levitated, "we have to go, before they realized that their prey was never there."

Even without one of his feet, Albafica managed to stare, "...you're not here to end us?"

The Sagittarius turned toward Pisces; his armored wings shimmered as an unknown magic surged swiftly from the tips of each feather. The grimace once again turned into smile, "our battle will have to wait. My master still wanted to save yours, Caster_._"

Albafica stared at his own master, still curled up and limping to him. Their choices are limited, and Caster might have to lower his pride a bit if they were to survive. The magic surging from this servant was becoming more and more powerful, but not dangerous, because Albafica himself knew what kind of magic this was. This magic is their chance to escape; if he let this chance slip by, he and his own master will be shred meat by the next hour.

Albafica nodded, seeing that there was only one way to get out of this mess, "...We accept your help, Archer. Or would you prefer being called as the Sagittarius Sisyphus?"

At the notion of the name, the Archer grinned, "It's not my name, unfortunately." The comment left Albafica mute.

The magic which flowed from his wings slowly formed a golden magic circle mid-air, which also levitated the three of them about one foot of ground. By the time Albafica gazed on the sky, seeing the Berserker flew at sonic speed toward its prey, the magic circle effectuate, sending those within effect to nothing. As the scenery of destruction before them become less imminent, another scene reformed, surrounding them in a bright light, before toning down to what the Caster could deduce as a parking lot.

No one was there, except the Archer and a brown haired boy—both mirroring each other, in terms of facial features. Before he could comment further, however, Albafica collapsed as his vision went black.

* * *

><p>Shun did not want to go through such experience any time soon.<p>

While it's true that he had been reduced to a helpless heap of a master back when the Berserker stroke, he still remembered how it felt to be transported through teleportation. While he knew how convenient the magic is, the whole process simply made his stomach churned, though he felt no significant hurting or anything. Conclusion: he _hated_ teleportation. Unfortunately, that was not really the big bomb.

He came to his sense when he felt a drag on his form; his summoned knight, still without a limb, collapsed on top of his feature, effectively bringing both of them down to the ground. They were too tired, and Shun understood.

"You should call him off, Shun."

The green-haired quickly shot up a look. His puzzled expression was clear; he knew the voice of this person, and the visual before him caught him off guard. In front of him stood the most surprising figure he could think of, especially when he stood next to a golden-armored figure. A summoner and his summoned knight; his own friend, Seiya.

Seiya was about to tend to him when his servant stopped the boy. He made a face, but the golden knight only shook his head in disapproval. "Caster's blood is dangerous, master. His blood could penetrate even the highest grade of magical protection."

"...urgh, I hate this kind of situation..." commented the boy as he scratched his head in dislike. His attention, again, came back to the green-haired boy covered in his servant's blood.

"Seiya?" Shun stuttered, clearly shocked by this revelation, but said boy only raised his hand... which was holding the black book of summoning, belonging to Shun himself. Shun was too shocked to even acknowledge his belonging.

"First comes first," he said as he threw the book lightly at him. "If you don't know how to call off your servant, read the incantation in the page that I already marked. It's a low-level magic using a small amount of cosmo, so it should be fine."

Shun glanced at his own form. The golden-armored man is right; he's covered with Albafica's blood and struggled to withstand both his own and servant's weight. Truth to be told, he could collapse and let darkness took over his consciousness, but there are so many questions in mind...

"What are you waiting, Shun? Your servant will disappear if you don't!"

Shun caught the stressing intonation so well that he pushed off his own question and quickly opened his book of summoning. Just like Seiya said, the marked up page is basically titled 'how to call off your servant', complete with the simplest incantation he ever encountered in the book.

Hurriedly, he spoke of the incantation while focusing the same power which he had rawly drawn from his cosmo just like before, "I grant you rest, o loyal servant, so you will arise as my blade and shield."

Shun noticed Albafica's glowing body and immediately grasped his form. Before he could utter another word, the form before him dispersed into soft golden lights and then disappeared completely. Of course, the boy is deeply shocked, fearing that Albafica disappeared to nothingness. He was about to shot a confused look at the brown-haired man when he realized something uncanny. He could feel it; deep in the back of his mind, there formed a presence—a sleeping mind, in a state of rest. Not only that, the alluring ambiance of Albafica's cosmo felt weak, but at least it's still growing faintly.

Shun closed his eyes; his servant is fine. Seiya was not lying.

"He's going to be fine," Seiya once again spoke, now kneeling right in front of Shun, "he'll need time to recuperate. You, on the other hand... I know you have questions."

Shun stared at the brown-haired boy back and made a face, "yes. First, why are you a master as well? Then, why did you not tell me?"

Seiya was showing signs of discomfort as he glanced sideways, to his own servant. The Archer had been watching the both of them, as if waiting something to happen—a conclusion of this matter, regarding on the game. With a heavy sigh, the boy nodded, as if signing his own resolution to fulfill his own terms.

"Alright. I've been waiting to drop the big bomb, anyway..." he said as he sat and made himself comfortable, "I am training to become a saint, just like these warriors we have summoned. Well, in my case, I accidentally summoned him," he pointed his index finger to the gold-clad wing-equipped warrior, "and had to go through this mess. Knowing I have a cosmically super-powered persona in my arsenal and am chased by other masters, along that line, will you believe if I had told you before?"

The explanation was simple, but Shun was always known to be more instinctive than his other friends. What Seiya told him was not the whole truth. He had known Seiya for some times; it's not in his qualities to actually hide parts of the truths.

Nevertheless, one thing caught his interest.

"A... saint?" he blinked several times. If he's not mistaken, according to Albafica, saints trained their bodies and learn to access greater power of cosmos to create wonders and miracles. However, magic... he was sure magic is just not in the roster of Saint's skills. "But... saints... they are not able to cast... I don't know, _magic_?"

Shun's words were brought to a halt when Seiya revealed a green book from his bag (Shun did not realize that he carried it with him, all the time), ornamented much like his.

"When we carried out the book's first task, we'd been already deemed as masters in this game," he stated, "It doesn't matter whether you're proficient in channeling cosmo or not. When you became master in this game, you're deemed as magician—because this book—," Shun could see the boy's grip on the cover tightened, "—channels your cosmo, converting it independently according to specific. Yes, a spell."

Shun stared at this boy's eyes and saw another boy, because Seiya would not—_could _not—even state this calmly, as though all of these strange events are normal; as though Seiya had been through this all over.

As though he's experienced with this game.

"By the time you touch this book, it's yours to keep—until your fall. Try not to let it fall to the enemy's hand, okay? Especially from that mean black-haired lady."

And by the time Shun realized that Seiya was chanting something in words he could not recognize. Soft glow surrounded both the master and his Archer. Something told him it's another teleportation magic—the same magic which that man had used.

"Wait!" Shun exclaimed, which quickly picked the other's attention. The words did not form almost immediately; so many things he would like to say, but then again... he knew that he would meet the boy later on. Other questions would have to wait.

So, he did the only thing that summarizes his feeling, "...thank you, Seiya, for saving us."

Shun believed that he saw an ardent look, crossing the boy's face, before he nodded it off effectively, with a smile, "you're my friend. Friends support each other."

Split-seconds later, the glowing lights surrounding both him and his servant covered them whole, before they vanished in thin air. Deep inside his thought, those last words reverberated, as though asking to be remembered forever. Or was it to be reminded all over?

For some reason unknown to him, Shun felt nostalgic.

* * *

><p>"Aiolos, tell me... do you think I am running away?"<p>

It was a question which he, as a servant, prefer not to answer. He's not answering, because he knew that his master cognize the bitter fact. That, and the fact this is the same boy that he had entrusted his goddess in those years...

...memories of the past did not matter in this game, for his soul was now also waged in the game. His soul is, at best, Khronos'. The Lord of Time could simply annul the bond between him and this supposed-to-be Pegasus Saint of the 20th century.

Maybe his thought was wrong anyway.

"...Well?"

Cold breeze pass them as the gazed upon city lights. No one would care a pair of two men, standing on top of an anonymous building. Aiolos, however, could sense how lives are going; people buzzing the streets, catching for the last train; people who hurriedly ran for home; and people who just want to have fun. All the people, and everything was off.

Aiolos only smiled, then sighed.

"When you decided on something and stand by your resolve, I would not really say this act of yours as... running away. That is the path of a saint." he stated, carefully, "but let me ask you this once more, master: are you alright with this?"

His master turned at the servant, showing one of his warm smile—almost at peace. As he eyed the blue orb hovering on his left hand, he stated with determination, "it's necessary."

When his words ended, another bluish magic circle formed on his standing place, growing twice bigger as he spoke the words inscribed in his summoning book, held on his right hand. Fuyuki city was then blanketed with blue light.

Everything _might_ have changed.

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><p><strong>AN:** Slow update, I know, but bear with me, okay? Well, isn't Seiya so off here? Well, he had his reasons, which are revealed in later chapters, of course.


	6. Chapter V: Forgotten

****Disclaimer:** **Fate and Saint Seiya Lost Canvas series do not belong to me. They belong to TYPE-MOON and Masami Kurumada (though it was drawn by Shiori Teshirogi, the world is basically Kurumada's) respectively. I take no profit in the making of this fan fiction, but still hope for some feed backs from the reviewer. I'm doing this just for the fun of it, really.

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><p><strong>Chapter V: Forgotten<strong>

It was early in the morning when Shun opened his eyes. The sun was not up, yet, as he slowly woke up to his sense. It took him at least 5 minutes to recollect what had happened for the past 24 hours: his assault in the middle of the park, being faced with heartless monstrosities, saved by a friend whom he had not expected at all, and then, Albafica's recuperation in the back of his mind due to his magical effort, all according to the rules of Khronos Game. With such turns of event, going to school didn't sound promising, so Shun decided to walk home.

By the time he arrived in front of the door, he was faced with a surprised Ikki who decided to interrogate him right in front of the gate due to, for example, several bruises on his arms and drops of blood all over his attires. Before the older brother could comment, Shun had already snapped as he was reminded that those blood are not his, and hell if he knew whether it could kill his brother. Ikki was somewhat startled, which Shun took the moment to escape into his room. He could hear his brother ranted outside his room and slumped to the floor, clearly exhausted. His brother cared, but he could never tell what had happened, could he?

For the first time in the last three years of his life, he shut Ikki out. That left bitter after-feeling. At this thought, Shun could not only help but sigh.

His stomach growled loudly, wanting to be filled with decent foods—something which should have been his responsibility. With him forgetting his main duty (even though Ikki could cook for survival, his brother is in no condition to do so), he still wondered whether there are some leftovers from dinner.

...oh wait, he never managed to fix dinner. Shun groaned, but decided to walk out his room.

Ikki stared at him—long, hard, and demanding. Even under such gaze, Shun gulped. Slowly, he creeped to the seating, readying himself for any outburst which is coming in 3... 2...

_SLAM!_

...less than 3 seconds.

Ikki was already right in front of him, slamming his hand on the table, clearly pressuring—or rather, preventing himself from unnecessary further damages. "So. Care to tell your big brother now?"

Even Shun broke eye contact between himself and his older brother. Perhaps it was his nervousness that ultimately made the older brother sighed in annoyance, clearly not to Shun, but rather to himself. Proud as he is, Ikki knew that is not the way to squeeze information.

But, hell, he needed to know what happen, before his imagination get the best of him.

"Let me guess," he started, "you're involved in a fight. Who beat you up?"

Shun shook his head a bit, and then came to look his brother in the eye, again, "Ikki, please. It's not like that—"

"If it's not, then what is _this_?" he pointed Shun's cut on his cheek, clearly stating the obvious as his dear brother kept refusing to admit the truth. He knew cuts and bruises which are left after fights, being a troublemaker himself. He had to admit that the cuts and bruises all over his brother's features indicated gruesome fights. Fortunately, it was already treated as much as he could muster.

"It was an accident!" the green-haired boy stated calmly, though he accentuated the last word. He was not used to lying, but he could be very convincing when needed; who would ignore his innocent feature anyway? Besides, would his brother even believe him if the truth comes out? He highly doubted it. "I was almost hit a car, fell down next to a rusted fence, and cut my cheek in the process. It's purely accident!"

The blue-haired boy scowled, clearly not buying the lie. "That's your story, Shun? Because you will have to come up with something more believable. And really, now... you're stooping so low that you even _lie _to your _brother_?"

Shun knew his mistake, verily. Ikki was not a man who would tolerate lies, but Shun really hoped that he would not question himself more than he should. Mustering his courage, Shun looked unto his older brother's challenging blue eyes. If he should lie thousand times to prevent Ikki's involvement from this war, so be it. He would not impose him to the dangers which he had felt with his own skin.

He would never.

"Because, Ikki," he said slowly and then stood, still locking gaze with his brother, "it's not your time to know—yet," _and there will never be the time_, he added mentally, "I will tell you when the time is right—just like how you told me of your tuberculosis, after this whole_ time_."

He registered the denying face of his older brother and then took his chance to escape with his schoolbag and went outside of the apartment. He could hear Ikki's yell, urging him to wait, but Shun knew better; if he were to stand there, he would blabber of everything. The growing fear churning inside him almost overpowered his resolve of not telling the whole truth.

He always had Ikki as his pillar of strength; now, he had none.

He expected the older boy to actually chased him (Ikki was just that stubborn), but saw no blue streaks. Nothing. Sighing, he wondered if he should ever go back to their apartment, knowing his own presence would alert other masters should he remain outside.

His stomach growled, but the green-haired boy pushed the thought of eating aside. Racking his brain for a good decision but finding none, he sighed again as he continued walking towards his school. It was for the sake of meeting Seiya that he went to the direction anyway, seeing how his best friend is particularly his rival in this Khronos Game.

Shun never realized a pair of dark eyes, watching him from the shadows silently.

* * *

><p>Even as he reached out to his class, he did not find the brown-haired boy in question. His seat, which was directly in front of his own, is left empty. The class started just as he went inside, leaving no time for him to question Seiya's absence, not even to Shiryu, whose seat was basically next to him.<p>

He wouldn't dare whispering in this class, not when the coldest man he had ever known reigned as his physics teacher for the next two hours. The man had green hair, which was darker than his own and trimmed neatly so that they wouldn't get past his chin. However, unlike his naturally laid one, some mops of his hair sprang a bit to the backside of his head. Unlike other teachers which are generally in their mid-thirties, this teacher demonstrated that young teaching geniuses existed, even among teachers themselves. Said man already gained enough respect from his fellow teaching colleagues, as well as his students. Shun even heard that he has his unofficial fan club, but he sometimes wondered if it was just some rumors.

The man was called Camus; he had never once disclosed his last name to the students, which added his silent charms to some girls. Some preferred calling him the "Ice Lord" due to his teaching nature, and his means of threatening. Who else, in his right mind, would criticize a student while grabbing a spray containing liquid nitrogen?

Camus shiftily eyed his students, clearly checking whether everyone has already entered the class. His eyes, after watching the organized crowd, finally stopped at the lone chair before Shun. He quickly cleared his throat.

"Good morning everyone. I see all of you are already in your respective seats," he stated at first, just like how an ordinary teacher should be, "we'll be having a short quiz on geo-physic, which we have learned yesterday. Please ready a piece of paper—"

Shun was already drowned in the collective groans from the participants as he realized that his teacher did not mention Seiya's absence. When he was about to speak about it, the cold teacher raised his eyebrows. The banters stopped, and Shun's intention was lost due to such silent, authoritative manner. Shun eventually raised his hand, as he realized not only his teacher missed this, but also the other student as well. Camus did not throw his cold glare as usual when Shun did so, nor did he snap at him as the boy commented, "Sir, I think you miss Seiya. He's not here."

For some reasons, every pair of eyes—including Shiryu's, he noticed—in the vicinity was then on him, puzzled, as though Shun was asking the stupidest idea ever. Even Camus stared at him blankly; his eyebrow rose a bit, as he spoke of something that churned his inside.

"There is no one named Seiya in this class."

* * *

><p>"There <em>is <em>a boy named Seiya! We used to hang out here, at this rooftop!"

Shun did not even bother to lower his voice when he, Shiryu, and Hyoga gathered on the top of the school building after the class. His latter friends gave him unnerving glances, unsure about how to respond. Their bentos were left, as none of them had the appetite due to Shun's insistence.

"We told you already, Shun," Hyoga was already at the peak of his patience, "there was no Seiya. You heard Camus-_sensei."_

Shiryu, however, silently gazed at his friend, who was still sitting dejectedly across him. He quietly put his chopsticks next to his own bento; there would be no time to finish his food by the time they end the conversation anyway. "Are you sure he is not from your dream?"

Shun narrowed his eyes, "Shiryu! You knew him more than I do! Seiya is not a dream!"

"But Shun," the chinese man actually raised his voice to emphasize his words, "I never even knew a person named Seiya in my entire life!"

"But—!"

_'Master, stop it_.'

Shun went silent when Albafica's voice suddenly filled his head. It rang so loud that he almost lost his composure. ...actually, he did lost his composure, earning Shiryu and Hyoga a concerned look. Even the blond teen took extra measures to stabilize Shun's suddenly weakened form by supporting Shun's arm.

"Do you need to go to the infirmary?" It was Shiryu's turn to ask, as he calmly checked Shun's pulse. Living with his uncle who was known as a prominent kung-fu master taught him the basics of first aid. Shun shook his head as he tried to straighten his posture. Even after steadying himself, neither Shiryu nor Hyoga let go of his form, as though they were afraid that Shun is going to collapse at any second.

_'I can feel magic at work here. Someone has tampered their memories,' _his servant continued. Somehow, Albafica's voice was less hurting than his previous attempt. In response, Shun gave him a mental nod. This was something which he needed to discuss with the servant, without the presences of his friends.

After a worrying pause, Shun smiled, if not briefly, "I'm fine, both of you. You could release me."

Hyoga sighed and let go of his grip, still staring at the green-haired boy worriedly, "I still believe you need to go to the infirmary."

Shun shook his head again, "They will not believe a healthy boy like me down in the infirmary. I am fine, Hyoga... just a bit disoriented."

They were silent for some moment, partly because Hyoga kept on casting worried look to Shun. Shiryu was the one to stop him from worrying with a tug on his shoulder and decided to break the ice. "Have you heard? They said a psychopath had been in the loose for several days. Three people was killed already."

Shun quickly turned towards Shiryu as he listened to the unnerving news. At least he could always depend on him to change the topic. "Three people? That's just... awful."

For some unusual reason, he was reminded of that black-haired lady and her servant. Shun shuddered.

Hyoga crossed his hands, "the victims are not actually related to each other, so the killer must be killing in random," he glanced at both of his friends, uncertain. "A friend of mine in the force said that the police are actually suspecting people with blue hair, because in every scene, there are several strands of them."

What Hyoga had said quickly calmed his nerve, especially about the blue strands part. But of course, if the main suspect was someone with blue hair... Shun could not afford to summon Albafica carelessly, because if he was seen together with potential suspect, the officials would have to catch him. As if he had not enough masters and servants to deal with...

While Shun was busy piecing the information, they heard the bell rang. Hyoga glanced at his own food, then groaned, for he regretted not finishing his meal. Shiryu was not even fazed with this problem and simply stood up, casting a glance at the green-haired teen.

"See you later then, Shun. Make sure you're already home when night comes."

* * *

><p>"Is there any spell to... tamper ones' memories?"<p>

Shun started with a question so good that even Albafica went silent for several minutes inside his head. After several minutes of walking home alone with Albafica's constant present, Shun felt the change in pressure—or maybe it was just his imagination.

The sun was setting. He was still half way from home, and it was intentional. After his fight with Ikki, Shun did not have the courage to face his brother and intended to prolong as much time as he could, just to avoid meeting him. Besides, it was better for him to be alone for awhile, especially when he wanted to talk privately with his person without being stared at, as though he was mentally ill. That included Ikki.

_'There is not any, Master.'_

That made the teen stopped in annoyance; so what was his servant talking about back then?

"But I thought you said that magic is tampering their memories—"

_'One does not really need a spell to make magic—or cosmo—works. Especially if you are skilled at manipulating cosmo.'_

This picked the teen's interest. "Go on?"

_'While magic can be invoked without the use of spell, one can still invoke magic by using sheer power of will and imprints._ _But you must be born to have such ability, and only one out millions who were born as such, because we are talking about a higher rank of magic at work.'_

The Caster went silent once more. Shun idly kicked a stone near him while drawing his own conclusion. To make things clear, it was possible that he would be facing with even more skilled master—skilled enough to exercise magic without a spell. It bothered him.

The sun had disappeared from his line of sight. Shiryu's note, as if serving to remind him, rang in his ear. Along the thoughts, Caster Albafica chuckled lightly inside his head. _'I will not let some psychopath hurt you, master. Should you desire more time to think outside your apartment, you do not need to worry.'_

He glanced at the bluish sky, wondered whether he should go home already or waited. His mind also drifted away, towards a certain brunette, forgotten even by his own friends. Alas, he sighed in defeat, "everything about this made my head ache. Let's just go home and think about a plan."

Shun continued walking. His servant noticed a vanishing pair of black eyes on his master just like last morning, but decided to leave it at that.

* * *

><p>Archer Aiolos stood high on the building as he searched for his enemies. As he closed his eyes, he could sense every cosmo within his reach—an ability which he inherited for making contract with his current master. He could sense several friends of his master walking home, or even the green-haired master whose servant was still recovering from his last fight. The raging cosmo of Berserker was nowhere to be found. It was possibly hidden away by his own mistress.<p>

He did not miss the cosmo of someone familiar approaching him in such unbelievable speed. Though he knew this person would not fly, Aiolos knew for sure that he would climb this building in a matter of seconds. As he opened his eyes and felt the wind took pace, he turned and saw golden armor glinting in the moonlight. He recognized a very familiar face, and a stern form.

Despite their current disposition and situation, Aiolos could not help but smile, "It is always nice to see you again, Shura."

Shura—or rather, Saber Shura—gazed away to his chagrin, but still kept his sharp cosmo ablaze. Aiolos never gave a hint of of raising his and promptly chuckled. "I suppose your master wants me dead, then?" he whistled, "it is like in the past all over again."

Perhaps it was Aiolos' blithe tone that made the other turned, still masking his face with a stern expression and trying his best not to let the cracks show, for he regretted his past actions only to be met with his greatest shame.

"It's different now," he calmly spoke, "we do not fight for our goddess. This time... we fought for ourselves."

Aiolos let out a chuckle once more and shook his head in disagreement, while he raised his cosmo bit by bit, "and you know it in your heart that it is only partial truth. And I suppose..." he took his bow and summoned his arrow once more, "...there is nothing left to be discussed, isn't it?"

Even though he was weighed down by the regret of killing his own friend in the past, Saber rushed forward to repeat his sin.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I know. I'm cruel. So sorry it takes half year to update, and I give you all shorter chapter than before. It's hard to write down this chapter because of feels, plot bunnies, and distractions. I just can't bear to write this part, because I'd be putting friends on edge. Again. Dear, please just forgive me ._.

Now then, who erased Seiya's existence? Just who is the person tailing Shun and his servant? Why is Aiolos alone? And this psychopath in question... who is this? Find out more in the next installment of Rewind, Refight, Relive! ...Just pray I don't get distracted with another project of mine.


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